Violence rates high at Ohio youth prisons

Juvenile prisons had more than 1,600 assaults in 2011, with an overall population of only 680 youths. The adult population of more than 50,000 inmates had nearly 2,500 assaults. Assaults include striking another person, throwing at and hitting them with an object, and spitting at or biting.

The Columbus Dispatch reported some Department of Youth Services staffers say there isn't enough discipline in the youth prisons and that conditions are dangerous for both the teens and the prison staff.

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"We have to go in every day wondering if it's going to be safe for us," said Jonathan Blackford, 35, who is a corrections officer at the Circleville Juvenile Correctional Facility.

A corrections officer at the Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility was hospitalized in September after three inmates charged into her office and beat her.

The four Ohio youth prisons include the state's most violent juvenile offenders, and also some young people with mental issues.

The state spends much more on youth inmates than adults; some $161,497 annually per youth compared to $24,871 on adults, The Dispatch reported. The focus is on rehabilitation and preparation for a productive adult life.

"We want them to go out of the door better than they came in the front door," Reed said. "We want (staff) to go home and be excited about what they did and how kids change."

Reed said his administration is addressing staff concerns that young inmates are aggressive because they have little to fear in terms of punishment.

"We've strived to make our facilities safer with (a special program) for use-of-force incidents and holding youth accountable for their behavior, using graduated sanctions that include 'intervention hearings,' " Reed said.

In 2008, the state reached agreements in two lawsuits alleging unconstitutional treatment of youth in Ohio prisons.

A monitor's report this month said gangs, sexual misconduct and poorly performing teachers have been problems in some facilities. But monitor Will Harrell praised "hard work" by the Department of Youth Services for improvements.

"In some areas, like reducing the youth population in secure confinement and regionalizing services, Ohio has truly become a model to the nation," he wrote.

The president of the Juvenile Justice Coalition said the Ohio youth facilities have increased availability of mental health services for the youths.

"They've gotten qualified staff," said F. Edward Sparks, of the group that promotes community-based alternatives to incarceration.

The state also has dramatically reduced the prison population for juveniles. It has dropped from nearly 2,000 in 2007, when the state operated seven youth prisons.

There is priority put on placing juvenile offenders in community programs, sending them to prison only as a last resort. But the prison reduction also left the most-violent offenders in only four prisons.

"We received the worst-possible juveniles in the state, and that's what caused an increase in violence," said Karl Wilkins, a youth specialist at the Scioto juvenile prison. He said it received inmates from a facility in Franklin Furnace that was closed in 2011.